Tesla chief executive Elon Musk announced that the electric car-maker’s new Model 3 sedan will start rolling off the company’s Fremont assembly line this Friday – two weeks ahead of schedule.
The “mass market” five-seater electric car has passed all regulatory tests, Musk noted.
In a tweet Musk said: “Model 3 passed all regulatory requirements for production two weeks ahead of schedule. Expecting to complete SN1 [serial number 1] on Friday.”
Model 3 passed all regulatory requirements for production two weeks ahead of schedule. Expecting to complete SN1 on Friday
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 3, 2017
The first 30 Model 3 customers will receive their cars during a handover party on July 28.
Musk said that production will grow exponentially. 100 Model 3 cars are slated for August, followed by 1,500 units in September. Production is expected to reach 20,000 units a month by December, Musk added.
Looks like we can reach 20,000 Model 3 cars per month in Dec
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 3, 2017
The basic Model 3 starts $35,000 (£27,000), which is almost half the price of Tesla’s current most affordable car.
Musk said in the past that the company’s goal is to make roughly 500,000 vehicles a year once production is at full capacity – a signifciant leap from the 84,000 cars that the company produced last year.
Customers can reserve a Model 3 online for $1,000.
The company hasn’t provided an update on the number of pre-orders since May 2016, when it said that 373,000 Model 3 reservations had been made. However, Musk has said that demand for the Model 3 has been so high that those who put down the $1,000 reservation fee for one now won’t receive their unit until last 2018.
Investors welcomed the news. Shares in Tesla rose by about 2% on Monday.